"Day, Got the scoop of a Lifetime"

-Entertainment Tonight

Washington Post, August 20th

5 myths about Manson

Myth number 2: Manson was a Hippie

When the Family was indicted on murder charges, the Los Angeles Times labeled the group a "hippie clan," and the tag has become an immutable part of the way we see them. In "Once Upon a Time . . . in Hollywood," the character played by Leonardo DiCaprio sneeringly dismisses the Manson girls as "hippies." And a new book on Manson, "Hippie Cult Leader," also suggests that he shared the movement's flower-power ethos. But that was about it!

"incredible insights in your book...what was it like speaking with Manson."

Martinis and Murder

E-NEWS, August 10th

Helter Skelter Askew: Why the Story Behind the Manson Family Murders Is Now Full of Holes

But as we've reached 50 years since four followers from the cult that was later dubbed his "Family," butchered seven people over the course of two nights in August, the story of why this all happened has started to shift with regard to the complicated mythology behind the motive that was officially given for his and his minions' most infamous crimes.

And it's not as if the motive detailed in court—the triggering of "Helter Skelter"—was some sort of logical answer as to why and how these murders took place, either.

"There's an element of it that remains unsolved, that keeps people talking about it," filmmaker James Buddy Day, author of the new book Hippie Cult Leader: The Last Words of Charles Manson

"One of the best 9 books on Manson." Oxygen

Time Magazine, July 26th

But, says James Buddy Day, a true-crime TV producer and author of the new book Hippie Cult Leader: The Last Words of Charles Manson, everyone involved in the crimes had a slightly different take on what happened. While researching the book, Day conducted interviews with Manson — who was still serving a life sentence — during the year leading up to Manson's death on Nov. 19, 2017, at the age of 83, and is thus believed to be the last person to interview the infamous criminal at length.

Inside Hook August 8th

"I wrote him a bunch of letters and didn't think in a billion years he'd call," Day tells InsideHook. "Maybe I'd get a letter back or something. And then, out of the blue, he just called me this one time. The first time he called me, I thought he would never call again and that it would just be a story to tell at parties. Then he called again. And then he called again, and it became a reality that I could do this documentary and that he would contribute to it." "And that even today, two years removed from his death, Manson's story — however twisted and grim — continues to endure even two years after his death."

"He was aware of U.S. politics. I don't recall ever speaking to him about Trump, but he definitely talked about Obama, who he wasn't a fan of," Day says. "Manson was raised in the Deep South in the Ohio River Basin ... [And much later, in prison] he carved a swastika on his forehead. He kind of adopted a racist persona to align himself with people in prison who could protect themselves. He was definitely a bigot in that sense."


True crime documentarian Buddy Day was eating chicken wings in a noisy restaurant when his mobile phone rang. Charles Manson was calling. That quick conversation with the notorious murderer led to a year's worth of phone calls between Manson and Day, an award-winning film, and now Day's book, Hippie Cult Leader: The Last Words of Charles Manson. Through hours of conversation with...